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// Chapter 7~First Day (PT.2) 
// Story: Youngblood 
// by Centurion Pike-Wall 
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Depressi's first couple of classes went pretty well. After the teacher in his first class handed out the materials and academic policy sheet, she played a few ice-breaker games among the students. After that, the teacher used the chalkboard to outline her lesson plan for the first few weeks of school, as well as handing out the first unit packet for the semester. While they didn't receive any actual work, she told them just before the bell rang that on Friday, they'd be having an evaluation quiz to see how far along mathematically they were.

The next class Depressi went to was English, where he was greeted by Miss Cozy Glow. Like before, she was rather upbeat about everything, including doing the same syllabus pass-out and ice-breakers. She also hoofed out a pair of books they'd be reading that semester: Frankenstag* by Mary Saddle and a Pryhan novel called Mr. Midshipman Cornicen** by Cecil Forester. 

The third class was Food and Nutrition. Normally, someone in his grade would have to take Pryhan classes; however, due to the fact he was a native speaker, he was allowed to take an extra class and chose this one. The teacher, a somewhat chubby tan earth pony stallion named Cookie Dough, greeted the class and explained the schedule for each week. They'd learn about something on the first day of the week, and proceed to set it up and make it throughout the week. Unlike the others, he didn't give them any syllabus's or play any ice-breakers. He told them that they would all get well acquainted with one another during the course of the semester.

The fourth class was Physical Education. That class met in the school's gym, where Coach Sandbar talked to all of them about how the schedule would work. They would go to the locker rooms, change into P.E. clothes, then head down to the track unless given specific instructions. He explained how the grading system would work for the class, then let them read or talk for the rest of the period. 

After that, it was time for recess...


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Coach Sandbar yelled, "Have a good day, everypony! If you want to talk to me about anything, my office is right next to the weight room!"

Depressi adjusted his saddlebags as he left the gym, heading towards a stairwell at the end of the hallway. He climbed up, before cutting across the hallway he found himself in and entering the schools main lunch area.

The main school campus was shaped like a square, with the lunch area being a square inside the square. It was a large yard with two sets of lunch tables on either end. The central area was a small grassy field with several trees along the edge near the tables. Ponies and the few exchange students milled about, eating, chatting, reading, or otherwise enjoying their ten-minute respite before the next period.

Depressi spotted his brother, who was sitting under one of the trees. He took off and landed next to him, saying, "Salve, brother. How were your first couple of periods?"

"Fine", DJ said. "Mostly the typical, stale shit."

"Mostly? Then it must've not been entirely so. What happened?", Depressi asked.

"Oh, just some aristocratic profligate acting condescendingly to me", he said, waving his paw around. "Nothing all that important."

"Heh. The same thing happened to me", Depressi said. "Unicorn mare with a grey coat, purple mane, more jewelry than a Minoan Tyrant?"

"Maybe? I didn't pay all that much attention to h-Oh, that's her right there", he said, pointing.

Depressi followed his brother's gaze to look at a pair of ponies. One was High Society, the mare he had in geometry. The other one was a pegasus stallion with a light blue coat with a brownish-yellowish mane and a cutie mark of a simple dark grey cloud. The two of them were chatting, High Society asking something to another unicorn mare. 

"Yeah, that's the same one from geo." A thought then occurred to Depressi, who turned and asked DJ, "You didn't say anything... rude to her, did you?"

DJ stopped to consider it, before telling him, "Well, I may have called her a bitch. To her face."

Depressi looked at him in horror. He said, "Why, in the name of all the Caesars that have reigned, did you do that!?"

"Because she was being a bitch!", DJ said, throwing up his forelegs. "Besides, it's not like she could even fucking understand me."

Depressi scowled, before stealing a look back over at High Society. He turned his head fully as he saw that she and the pegasi were coming towards the two of them. Depressi said, "Well, even if she didn't understand you, she's coming this way."

DJ looked to where they once were, seeing that they weren't there anymore. He then said, "Can you move?"

"Why exactly?", Depressi asked. 

"Because I can't see from my right eye, and the place you looked is behind you. You're in the way." Depressi did as he asked, taking a step to the side and allowing him to see them. "Huh. You were right."

"Just let me do the talking, ok? I don't want you to fuck it up any more than you may have already", Depressi said. 

The two of them trotted up to them, the stallion standing off to the side as High Society came a bit closer. "Excuse me, dear. But, could you move aside. I need to talk to that overgrown Pidgeon."

"Can I ask what you want to talk to my brother about?", Depressi asked.

"He called me... some vulgar term I will not dignify him by repeating", She said. "I merely wish to have a chat with him."

Depressi sighed. "Look, I am terribly sorry about my brother. He is-"

"I don't care what he is, I want to have a word with him. Either you can help me, or you can stand aside", she said. 

Depressi said, "I can translate for you. My brother has terrible equish, and he'd probably be a bit more comfortable with me around."

"Fine", she said. "Tell him that I am not exactly happy about what he said, and that he better apologize

"Tell her I can understand her", DJ said. 

"Aren't you going to apologize?", Depressi asked. 

DJ shrugged, telling him, "If it'll get her to shut up, then sure."

"He apologizes", Depressi told her. "Now, is there anything else you may want?"

"Well, how has Equestria been treating you two?", High Society asked. 

Depressi shrugged. "It's been fine. Certainly different from the Empire. But, I've, at least, had some experience with your nation."

"Oh, that's wonderful. Isn't that right, Thunderhead?" The stallion nodded, and she continued. "It must be so interesting to be in a place you normally wouldn't belong, right?"

"Wouldn't belong?", Depressi questioned. 

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it?", High Society said, shooting him a saccharine smile. "You obviously don't belong. Your attitudes, your looks... basically everything!"

Depressi cocked his head and said, "That is the full point of this program we are in, no? To learn?"

High Society said, "I suppose so. Still, perhaps you should watch how you act. No matter what, you may not be entirely welcome by other ponies here."

"What are you doing?", another voice said. Turning to their side, they spotted Maraschino coming up to them, a look of mild irritation on his face. 

"Oh, hello, brother", High Society said, her voice changing from condescension to delight. "How may I help you?"

"Stop bothering my friends, for one", Maraschino said. "And after that, stop calling me brother. We're not related."

High Society balked and looked between the trio of stallions with a look of disgust. She said, "Your friends? They're Pryhans!"

"And you're from Manehattan, not Ponyville", Maraschino replied. 

High Society opened her mouth to speak again, only for it to be clamped shut and a growl emanate from her throat. "Fine. Have a nice day, brother", she said, turning around. "Come, Thunderhead. Let's go."

As the two of them walked off, Depressi said, "Gratias."

"Don't mention it", he said. 

DJ asked, "She... call you... brother?"

Maraschino sighed, rubbing a hoof over his temples. "She's the daughter of my dad's ex-wife. She cheated on him, and High was born from it. Ever since we met, she's always referred to me as 'little brother'. I don't like it, but she still does it."

Depressi and DJ looked between one another, looking at one another with a sense of familiarity. Depressi said, "Very well then."

Before either of them could say anything else, a loud bell once again rung. Maraschino said, "Well, that's that. I'll see you two after school?"

"Sure", Depressi said. "Come, brother. We have the same next class, right?"

"Yeah, we do", he said, standing up and following his older brother back towards the buildings. 


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The rest of the day unfolded more or less normally. The next class that both of them shared was a special, small class that was filled only with the other exchange students, including his brother. It was taught by a unicorn named Syllable, who was to teach them equish in order to help them adjust to Equestria and understand their classes and classmates better. Mostly, it was the same thing as their other classes; introducing themselves and going over class rules and expectations. 

After that, Depressi made his way to an Art class. This class was very much an oddity to him, being full of large desks full of cups of brushes, pens, and pencils. The students of this class sat in the front of the class in a half semi-circle in front of a chalkboard, while the teacher, a pegasus named Color Scheme, talked to the class. This time, they didn't receive a syllabus, and didn't play any small games. Instead, Color Scheme had them use pencils to draw a picture of whatever they wanted to as an examination of starting level. Depressi had attempted to draw a pair of Pryhan sentries in front of a gate, but felt that it didn't come out as such. 

Finally, after the awkwardness of Art, Depressi arrived at the class he was waiting for all day; History. In this case, the class was lead by another pegasus named Time Flow, who explained that they would be learning about the Histories of other nations outside Equestria.


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"Salve, Brother", Depressi called to the Demigryph as he flew over the crowd on the stairs leading out of the school. 

As he landed next to him, DJ said, "Salve, brother. Any other encounters with that mare?"

"High Society? No, no", Depressi said. "So, shall we go meet our new friends?"

"If it's alright with you, I'm gonna go find an isolated place to hit things", DJ said, licking his beak. 

"Fine by me", Depressi said, patting DJ on the shoulder. "I shall see you tonight. Vale, bother." The two of them parted ways, heading in opposite directions.